Pakistan should not compromise with terrorists
September 23, 2013
The recent attack on All Saints Church in the North-Western City of Peshawar has again exposed the failure of the
government and the law enforcement agencies of Pakistan in providing safety to its 180 million people. More bomb blasts,
more bloodshed, more tears and more grief, the people in Pakistan, Muslim or non-Muslim, are tired of counting and
burying the deadliest bodies of their love ones. Bomb blasts, lootings, shootings and targeted killings are daily
headlines and breaking news in the Pakistani media, yet the law enforcement agencies are incompetent of controlling the
ongoing acts of terrorism.
The attack on Church during Sunday’s prayer is another heinous and inhumane crime which cannot be tolerated by the
civilised world. Couple of dozen children and women in over 80 dead bodies found in the debris of the building of the
Church, most of bodies were found in pieces. The figures of dead are expected to be more as there were over 500
worshippers present in Sunday’s prayer. The incident has shocked the entire nation of Pakistan indiscriminately.
The waves of terrorism in Pakistan, since the 9/11 terrorists attack on twin tower in New York followed by attack and
military operation in Afghanistan by US-led forces, has left more than 40,000 people dead, hundreds and thousands of
seriously disabled and millions dislocated in Pakistan. The entire country from North to South and West to East has been
engulfed in terrorism. In the last 13 years, the people of Pakistan have seen every possible form of terrorists’ attacks
and bomb-blasts one can think about in the peaceful world. This terrorism has not only targeted Muslims but everyone
indiscriminately. Mosques whether Shia’s mosque or Sunni’s mosque, temples, churches, residential apartments in the most
populated areas, hotels, public venues, schools, police stations or army headquarters. Many top religious, scholars,
intellectuals, writers, journalists, professors, doctors, social workers, school children, tourists, politicians,
parliamentarians, police officers, top rank army officers to ordinary policemen have been targeted and killed. Jails
have been attacked where the most dangerous members of Taliban and Al-Qaida got freed. The banned fanatic organisations
in Pakistan and groups of Taliban have continuously and openly claimed responsibilities of these acts of terrorism. On
the other hand, the Pakistan government, civil law enforcement agencies, paramilitary force and army all are failed to
on-going acts of terrorism, target-killings, ransoms, gang-rapes, and lootings.
After each and every deadly attack and killings the top ministers and officials appear at the crime scene and submit
their scripted condolence with announcements of compensations for the survivors and families of the victims and that’s
it. They have hardly delivered the announced funds to the survivors and families of the victims. For example; the
survivors and families of the victims of the garment factory fire where about 300 people dead, the Abbas Town in
Karachi, Hazara Killings in Quetta, Bombs blast in market place in Peshawar, the list goes on, these are the most
unfortunate poor victims are waiting to receive money so that they can buy food and get shelter. The fate of the people
of Pakistan is now on the mercy of the terrorists and in the hands of rulers of Pakistan. This has been going on since
the civilian government was established after a ten years or so long military rule of General Pervaiz Musharraf. Not a
single criminal or terrorist has been captured and hanged to give a lesson to other criminals and terrorists; instead
the politicians in government and in opposition blamed previous government of Musharraf for this on-going terrorism for
the 5 years. The people of Pakistan are very unfortunate and feel that they are living in hell and there is no one there
to get them out. The most disgraceful and outrageous dilemma is that no one in the government from the President, Prime
Minister, Chief Minister to Interior Minister has courage to come in public and say ‘sorry’ and resign from his or her
job. How can they say ‘sorry’? The word ‘sorry’ is suited for those whose conscious is alive. They are professionals
working for their own vested interested; they have made millions of dollars of bank balances in the western world and
lavish residencies in Europe and US. When the blast at Church happened the Prime Minister of Pakistan Mr. Nawaz Sharif
who returned a day earlier from Turkey was on another foreign visit of the West.
Unfortunately, not only the entire system is corrupt, the government is totally failed to secure the lives of the people
and their places of worship, schools, hospitals, markets and homes. And now, the Pakistani government in the last couple
of weeks have released the most dangerous members of banned fanatic organisations and groups of Taliban including Mullah
Abdul Ghani, the Deputy of the leader of Taliban and Mullah Umer. The Pakistani government and army still are not
telling the story and deal behind these releases and what is the agenda of the government. On the other hand, the
Taliban have increased their attacks including their claimed killing of the top ranking army officers including one
Major General, and back to back bomb blast including this recent deadly attack on Church.
One cannot see any other reason except that the attack on minorities especially on the Church during Sunday’s prayer is
a clear indication that these attacks are very well planned by those forces who want to create reasons for US and
European forces to launch military operation in Pakistan like in Afghanistan and Iraq. These anti-state elements must in
in and outside Pakistan. This is a very serious and dangerous indication for the stability the state of Pakistan. The
people of Pakistan have to understand the conspiracies against Pakistan. The Pakistani nation has to demonstrate
solidarity and unity between them forgetting their ethnic, sectarian or religious differences. They have to stand-up
against the terrorists and their intolerable acts of terrorism. They must pressurise their government not to show any
concession and compromise with these criminals and Pakistani forces must launch military operation against them as
deadly as could be with full force to crash them. Pakistan arm forces consumed more than 70 precent of government
revenue for what if they cannot deal with these terrorists.
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Syed Atiq ul Hassan is a Sydney-based Journalist and an analyst, his homepage is www.sahassan.com